Using Gamification To Draw In Clients

"Gamification" is the newest business marketing tool. Gamification is using all the positive and addicting points from a video game standpoint and incorporating them into a format for every day activities. You use the "games" to do something that will allow you to wish to purchase a good or service. It allows potential customers and existing clients to use the power of online "gaming" to allow them to try out a product visually in 3D on a computer, before buying in real life.

There are many different instances in which gamification would work. Building and designing can be done in gamification. It makes the work at hand feel fun.

Gamification is very beneficial in designing. You can use it for digital house design or to remodel the inside of a home using room decorating software. Customers can try out things before actually purchasing the services or materials to do them.

From a business standpoint, gamification is an excellent idea in drawing in customers. They are visually and mentally stimulated by using software, giving them the satisfaction you feel when you do something correctly on a video game. The endorphins will accelerate, giving the customer a feeling of accomplishment. This "good feeling" rubs off and triggers the brain into thinking that they must have the product or service, no matter what. It is a way in using the senses to subliminally persuade the customer to buy.

From a customer's view, it is an addicting way to design something to their specification. They have the ability to see every possible choice available, on a screen, before having the work done.

For example, a customer is interested in having their living room redesigned. They will be able to log onto a webpage that is owned by the company that has an interactive interior design tool incorporated for use right on the webpage. Potential customers can put in their room dimensions, put the doors and windows in their proper areas on the screen, and then start "trying out" new ways of decorating.

They can start with flooring, for instance. They would be able to see what the room would look like with tile, with carpeting, or with wooden flooring. Each of these floorings would have choices of color or material used. With the click of the mouse, the customer can visually see the differences in the room.

After flooring, they can try out wall color, and start adding furniture. They would be able to drag and drop furniture to see what the room looks like with it in different areas. You can change styles, colors and placements.

The customer will enjoy seeing what the room looks like in different scenarios. When something pleases them, they may decide to purchase that particular item when redecorating.

This is just one way of using gamification. There are other ways. Anything that brings gaming principles to a regular website can help with sales. This is because the traffic on the site will increase if there is a fun factor, thereby increasing the chance of sales.

Another way to use gamification is by holding contests. If there was a webpage with a game involved, where the gameplayer has a chance of winning something, they will spend more time on that site, increasing time spent around the product or service information. An example of using bonuses and winnings would be on one of the many applications that you can download to your phone. There are several that use this type of gamification.

To do lists and check in applications are two of them. You checkmark things off of your to-do list and receive a medal. You will continue to try to get things done from your to-do list, because you want more medals. In turn, you have advertisements on the bottom of your screen that you see each time you log on. The same happens with check in sites. You receive points or medals for each place you visit. The more times you visit the application, the more times you see the advertisements.

When implementing gamification into a webpage or application, the game aspect will need to benefit the user and be fun in order for it to work. If there is no benefit, the user will quickly tire of the game and it will not have served its purpose. If it is fun and there is something to strive for, something that feels like an accomplishment to the user, then the gamification will have worked. The user will continue to use the application, and will build up a loyalty with the company.

The entire idea of gamification in today's electronic decade is a profitable idea. Everyone seems to be online, and not just at home, but also on the go via laptops, tablets and smartphones. The gamification can be done anywhere. Someone can get in a quick game at any time. And the game will cause someone else to make money. Kind of mind-boggling!

This post comes from Digital Decorator, an interactive house design planner that can be sued for free online. It’s completely free, and the developers going into it wanted to make it fun and accessible.